Types of Facade Lighting: Techniques, Effects, and When to Use Each

Facade lighting shapes the visual identity of a building at night. A single facade can look flat, dramatic, or premium depending on the technique.

This guide explains the main types of facade lighting and what each one is used for. It is written for architects, designers, and owners who want a clear direction before selecting fixtures or requesting a photometric plan.

Linear and Reveal Lighting

Designers use linear facade lighting to outline geometry. It works best in roof lines, soffits, reveals, and shadow gaps. When the detail is right, it looks clean and quiet. Without control, it creates glare and visible dots.

Linear and reveal facade lighting outlining roof lines and architectural geometry at night

Use linear lighting when the architecture has strong edges and clean planes. Keep output low and controlled. Add shielding and diffusers where the source could be visible from normal viewing angles.

Wall Washing vs Wall Grazing

Wall washing creates a smooth, even facade. By contrast, wall grazing emphasizes texture and contrast. Both approaches can work well, but they require different mounting positions, optics, and beam angles.

Wall washing: wider optics and a longer setback for even coverage.
Wall grazing: tighter optics placed closer to the wall to reveal texture.
Common mistake: placing fixtures too close with wide beams, which creates hot spots and glare.

Practical Details

Start with the surface. Smooth plaster typically benefits from washing. Stone, wood slats, and brick often look better with grazing. In practice, the goal is control, not brightness. Keep light on the facade and off the viewer’s eyes.

Setback and angle: these control uniformity and hot spots.
Optics: choose beam spreads that match facade height and spacing.
Shielding: use louvers and cutoffs to reduce glare and spill.

Wall washing vs wall grazing photometric analysis showing hot spots, contrast, and uneven vertical illumination on a facade — Photometric analysis shows how fixture position and beam angle affect uniformity, contrast, and glare on facade surfaces.

Accent and uplighting facade lighting with controlled vertical illumination at night — Good facade lighting looks intentional: controlled accents, balanced brightness, and minimal spill.

Accent, Uplighting, and Glass Facade Lighting

Not every facade needs even light. Many projects look better with selective accents. For example, you can highlight entrances, columns, canopies, and key architectural elements. Glass facades are a special case because reflections and interior brightness change the appearance.

Accent lighting: use narrow beams to highlight features without lighting the entire wall.
Uplighting: works for columns and vertical rhythm, but needs glare control and careful aiming.
Glass facades: balance exterior lighting with interior light levels to avoid mirror-like reflections.

Video example: accent lighting and uplighting on a facade with depth, rhythm, and detailed surfaces.

Best practice: set a clear goal (wash, graze, outline, accent) before selecting fixtures.
Do not rely on renders only: verify with IES files and photometric calculations.
Control glare: shielding and aiming are just as important as output.

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Key Takeaways

Linear and reveal lighting outlines architecture and works best when the source is hidden.
Wall washing is for smooth, even facades. Wall grazing is for texture and contrast.
Accent and uplighting need tight optics and glare control to look intentional.
Glass facades require careful balance to manage reflections and interior brightness.
A photometric plan verifies uniformity, hot spots, and spill before installation.

Glass facade lighting at night showing controlled exterior illumination and balanced interior brightness — Glass facades need careful balance between exterior lighting and interior light levels to control reflections.

If you want facade lighting that looks right and performs correctly, start with the technique and verify it with real photometric data. Stetra Lighting can produce a complete facade lighting photometric plan using your fixtures and IES files.